Ladybug, Ladybug
Ladybugs in the garden are a blessing. Both the adults and larva dine on aphids. Ladybugs are available in many nurseries now. The problem is to keep from flying away home. It is said that that if they are released in the cool of the evening or morning they are less likely to wander, and, of course, if they find a meal of aphids they will probably stay longer. Be careful: Almost every insecticide that kills aphids will also get ladybugs and bees.
Gloriosa daisies are a reliable flower for the late summer and fall garden. These tawny yellow daisies resemble sun flowers but also come in mixtures of brown and mahogany. They make good cut flowers too. Their colors are warm, so the addition of the cool whites of cosmos, centranthus, petunias or alyssum will freshen up a bed of them. They can be grown from seed now or planted from flats. The rarer variety ‘Green Eyes’ or ‘Irish Eyes’ has a green center instead of black.
Epiphyllum should be budding now. Don’t change the direction from which the light comes, because the buds will twist around trying to reorient. Fertilize lightly with a liquid 0-10-10 fertilizer. Prune out spindly and unsightly growth. If pots are near the ground, protect them from snails.
Expert information is available on most aspects of home gardening from the University of California Cooperative Extension. Over 1,000 agricultural publications written by horticultural experts are listed in the University of California Agricultural Publications Catalogue. Many of these publications are low-cost and quite helpful for beginning or experienced gardeners. To obtain a free copy, visit your local UC Cooperative Extension Office, or write for UCCE Catalogue, P.O. Box 160, Berkeley, Calif. 94701.
Pinch back fuchsias to make them bushy and give more tip growth; that is where they bloom. It’s not too late to start cuttings. If you find fuchsia mites on the undersides of the leaves, spray the plants periodically with an insecticide.
Water spring bulbs until the leaves die down naturally, even after ythe plants have finished blooming. As long as the plants remain green, they are storing water for the next year. Use a fertilizer with phosphorous and potash;a strong nitrogen fertilizer that is designed for growth may soften the bulbs and subject them to rot during the summer.
Be choosy when selecting vegetable plants at nurseries. Bigger is not necessarily better; small, sturdy, stocky plants will produce better than tall, slender plants. The foliage should be dark green and the soil in the container moist; if the soil is dry the plants have probably experienced a sporadic watering program at the nursery and growth will have been checked and the plants weakened. Examine the undersides of the leaves for whiteflies or other pests.
Remove the flowers from basil on a regular basis; otherwise plant energy will go to seed production rather than foliage growth. Harvest the leaves every other day or so; the more you use the leaves, the more tender new leaves will grow.
Plant watermelon seeds this month. ‘Crimson Sweet’ is a good variety for most of the Southland climatic zones. ‘Yellow Baby’ and ‘Yellow Doll’ produce icebox-type melons with a unique yellow flesh. Gardeners with limited space can plant ‘Bush Sugar Baby,’ ‘Sweet Treat’ and ‘Burpee’s Sugar Bush.’
‘Autumn Gold Hybrid’ pumpkin, a 1987 All-America Winner, produces beautiful 7- to 10-pound fruit pumpkins that reach maturity two weeks earlier than other varieties and can be stored for lengthy periods of time.
